For a second Siorus' expression pinches, brow furrowing less with confusion—though his life has left him unfamiliar with the full scope and style of Andrastian mages' abilities—than with a desire to press for further information for the sake of it. He resists, and he smiles. "Deal."

The cliffside path ahead switches back to wrap around the mountain in the other direction. The darkspawn are both ahead and above, which would be fine if they were too stupid to use bows and projectiles, but Thedas has never been so lucky. They could hide, or back up and wait for them to come around the bend, or he could ask Isaac to climb, or.

Siorus stands there, thinks it through, says, "I'll be right back," and folds himself into a large bird, brown and charitably ugly-cute. Its eyes aren't made for the daylight, but neither are darkspawns', so they're even.

He leaves Isaac behind to flit up the cliffside, pausing here and there on scrubby branches to reevaluate his positioning, and disappears over the upper edge.

Then: heavy thudding footsteps, first only rattling rocks loose to skitter down onto the path below, then heralding four blighted bodies that go sliding over the edge. It's orderly: they're escaping, not being thrown, sliding down on their armored hips or backs with weapons in hand.